


Zephye of the Desert Sands

by Ichigo777



Category: The Legend of Zelda
Genre: F/M, Multi, Original Character-centric, Other
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-01-07
Updated: 2015-03-01
Packaged: 2018-01-07 21:43:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 17
Words: 19,377
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1124703
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ichigo777/pseuds/Ichigo777
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Life in the desert has never been easy: the Gerudo have tried to make it simple though. And for thousands of years, the system of rules and regulations has worked just fine. Until now.</p>
<p>For the past six years, there's been an unusual 'problem child' mucking up the normal routine the sisters have come to learn and love by heart. A little girl who doesn't fit in with the rest, a girl who is decidedly different from them.  After a minor incident, the head council of the Gerudos make a decision to deal with the 'problem' in the tribe- namely to rid themselves once and for all of a six year old girl named Zephye. They never imaged the repercussions of such a decision until it was far too late. </p>
<p>Inadvertently their actions and decisions have altered fate's original design and thrown what once was to be certain into uncertainty. New bonds have been formed where they was once to be only animosity. Friends that would have been are now enemies and enemies that would have been have been turned into friends. The world has been turned upside down. And now, among the chaos that is about to unfold, a constant appears.</p>
<p>The King has returned.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue: The Decision

**Author's Note:**

> So, this is my little blurb for my story, my teaser prequel if you will. The first real chapter will have more background info. If I continue, they’ll be more explanation of course, but for now here’s the basic outline of what you need to know:
> 
> This takes place during a weird sort of timeline; it’s not technically “in-game”; it would happen after OOT’s event and into the future when Link is an adult and married to Ruto. Ganondorf has freed himself from his confinement in the sacred realm and passed into another ‘world’ and is on his way back to Hyrule.
> 
> There are a few OCs, some background characters like extra Gerudos and such, as well as a few main character OCs. 
> 
> The chapter after this, which will be called "Chapter 0: Reference Guide" is a reference guide to my little head cannon –it’ll be updated with every new chapter for info, so check that if you’re confused!

She stared up at her fellow council member, blue eyes set in determination as she met the other’s brown. Her face was serene, unlike the swelling storm that was growing inside her with every passing second and seemingly filling her whole body up with the sense of impending dread. With her mind set, she addressed the other one more time: one last try for reason.

 

“I truly hope, for your sakes at least Hyperia, that your assumptions are correct.”

 

The other paused momentarily in her work, brown eyes scrutinizing her form. And then whatever momentary insecurity she had was gone and she resumed her task. “Whatever do you mean, dear Asyl?”

 

Asyl smirked at her. “My, my, my… can none of you see what I have seen as a possibility? Are you so sure of yourself that you should discount it so?”

 

Hyperia scoffed and pulled the rope tighter, using her foot for leverage. When Asyl didn’t continue on her own she turned to face the other. “Either spit out your ‘possibility’ or shut up: your voice is getting annoying.”

 

Asyl shook her head. “Are you so blind, dear sister? Can none of you see?”

 

Hyperia didn’t respond, only continued her work on the ropes.

 

Asyl sighed. “True, you may be correct in all your thinkings of her – but have you all considered the possibility, and thus the consequences, if you are wrong?”

 

She paused – Hyperia didn’t seem to notice.

 

“Maybe she is a halfling with a ‘curse’, maybe she is a detriment to us all, or maybe she is something else, something that should be untouchable.”

 

Hyperia scoffed. “Untouchable? There is no such woman among us anymore who bears that right – less you wish to count statues.”

 

For a moment, there was silence. Asyl’s eyes moved unpreventably to the side, spying green to the high right. Then Asyl started to laugh. Eventually the grating sound wore of Hyperia’s last nerve and she struck the other across the face.

 

“Oh my dear Hyperia...” Asyl was still grinning. “I truly do hope I am not correct in my assumption for I would not like to be any of you four if I am.”

 

Hyperia didn’t pause again; she continued to finish the last of the knots.

 

“If your assumption is correct, then there shall be no consequences for you all and we shall rot as you wish. But if, by chance, I am the one who is correct then the four of you shall face such wrath that has not been seen in ages.”

 

Hyperia gave her a look, half anger half fear, but did not pause her work.

 

“She may be ‘cursed’, she may be a nuisance, and she may even be a halfling. But…if she is not than what she is is far more dangerous to you.”

 

Hyperia shoved her onto the wooden platform, tied with rope, and wordlessly began to lower her into the pit.

 

Asyl grinned at her from below as she slowly sank into the blackness.

 

“The daughter of Eridell, the spiritualist who unlike us requires a man to have a child, with a talent for witchcraft/magic, eyes like the golden sun, and deep bronzed skin born in the season of the winds, thus conceived before the feast of the sun.”

 

Hyperia turned and walked away as she continued to lower the rope and Asyl’s face vanished into the darkness. Her voice carried back to the top but was carried off by the wind away from the oblivious Hyperia..

 

“I surely hope I’m not correct: I can only imagine the horrors Lord Ganondorf would inflict upon you if it turns out the ‘scum’ you’ve attacked and confined turns out to be his dear Princess…”

 


	2. Chapter 0: Reference Guide

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Reference Guide to my little world XD

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This will be updated as I add chapters. 
> 
> As of now it is current through MY Chapter 12 (Chapter 14 on the listing).

0)    List of Major & Minor Standard Characters:

  1. Link: The Hero of Time & possessor of the Triforce of Courage. After Ganondorf was sealed and he reverted to his child age, Link spent time in other worlds around Hyrule adventuring and gaining prowess and strength. When he returned to Hyrule as an adult again, he was shocked to find that he was still ‘engaged’ to Ruto due to her freedom from Sage duties (as Ganondorf was sealed). Forced to e a man of his word, he married her. Ruto bore a son named Tzark whom Link is endlessly trying to train as a hero. He is still in love with Zelda.
  2. Zelda: The Princess of Hyrule & possessor of the Triforce of Wisdom. When she revered back to her child age after the defeat of Ganondorf, she and Impa went on to try and help rebuild Hyrule. She always expected to be with Link, but his promise to Ruto long ago threw a wrench into that plan. Now a grown woman, she’s still single and alone, ruling over Hyrule by herself.
  3. Ruto: The Zora Queen. Once a princess saved by Link, she gave him the Zora’s sacred gem with the promise of an engagement. When she awoke as a sage, she feared she had to break it but sealing Ganondorf allowed her her freedom and she enforced their engagement in the end after all. She’s a doting mother to her son Tzark and is willing to allow the young boy to follow his dreams.
  4. Ganondorf: The Gerudo King, skilled in sorcery, and the possessor of the Triforce of Power. After being defeated and sealed in the sacred realm, Ganondorf managed to escape after 10 long years into a neighboring world to Hyrule. Still after the Triforce pieces, it’s only a matter of time before he fully returns to Hyrule.
  5. Storm: Ganondorf’s purebred stallion, black a night. Storm has a nasty temperament towards the rest of the Gerudo women and generally allows no one else to tend to him unless absolutely necessary.
  6. Impa: A shiekatah and Zelda’s bodyguard, she is also a sage. After Ganondorf fell, she helped Zelda rule over Hyrule until she was old enough. Impa serves as a great advisor to Zelda, but her age is catching up to her at long last and the warrior
  7. CotG: Captain of the Guard of Hyrule Castle. He’s Zelda’s loyal protector and friend.
  8. Nabooru: The sage from the Gerudo Desert. After Ganondorf was sealed, she left the desert when the others rebelled in the name of Ganondorf. Nabooru’s attempts to reason with them ended in her untimely death.
  9. Rauru: The head sage of light. Living in the sacred realm, he was put in charge of watching Ganondorf while he was in captivity but the sorcerer overpowered the old sage and managed to escape. Ganondorf tied Rauru’s life to the portal, preventing the others from opening the realm again to seal him without killing Rauru.



 

1)    List of Major & Minor OCs: ((Appearance is described here))

  1. Eridell: The Gerudo tribe’s spiritualist who can connect with the desert gods. She was previously Lord Ganondorf’s lover but has currently been turned to stone by a malignant spell along with several other women.  ((Bronze skin, red hair, brown eyes; pink gem))
  2. Asyl: One of the five council members; a specialist in stealth. ((Bronze skin, red hair, blue eyes; black gem))
  3. Zephye:A bullied young Gerudo called a ‘halfling’ by the others but believed to possibly be more by Asyl. She is Eridell’s only child. Her only ‘true’ friend is Tzark. She is ‘cursed’ with the ability to do magic/witchcraft. Her origins are unknown to herself; only Eridell knew for sure. After her confinement and subsequent release, she is revealed to be a Princess, the daughter of their lord King Ganondorf although Zephye herself seems unaware of this. ((Bronze skin, red hair, gold eyes; green gem))
  4. Tzark: The son of Link & Ruto; ½ Zora, ½ Hylian. He posesses Zora abilities such as being able to breathe underwater, a resistance to ice, and swimming abilities. He’s capable in and out of water, but not very skilled. Link has always pushed him to be a ‘great hero’ but Tzark dislikes the idea - in fact Tzark disliked the idea so much he has blocked all memories of his father, whom he hasn't seen in years, and can't even remember what he looks like. He loves music. Tzark once saved Zephye's life; he's been her friend ever since. ((Pale white-gray skin, blonde hair, blue eyes; arm fins))
  5.  Elrose: Mentioned by name only; Ganondorf’s birth mother and the previous Lady. ((Bronze skin, red hair, brown eyes; White gem))
  6. Maple: Eridell’s horse; a brown mare with deep black hair. Named for her love of brown sugar.
  7. Schala: A young Gerudo, the daughter of council member Kallie, who has bullied Zephye for ages, even since they were very little. Perhaps Schala is jealous of Zephye or maybe she’s just mean, but either way after a particularly mean comment to Zephye involve the other’s mother, Zephye inadvertently attacked her with a ice blast, freezing half her face and hair. While Schala recovered from the physical damage, the mental scars and fear of Zephye remain. ((Bronze skin, red hair, brown eyes, purple gem))
  8. Guellena: A teenage Gerudo girl who strives to be like Asyl. It was she who witnessed Asyl’s imprisonment after Asyl failed to help Zephye and it is Guellena who attempts to help the pair in any way she can. ((Bronze skin, red hair, blue eyes, red gem))
  9. Beda: Another teenaged Gerudo who as mentored by Asyl. She and Guellena are best friends.((Bronze skin, red hair, brown eyes, purple gem))
  10. Hyperia: Another council member; shy and insecure. ((Bronze skin, red hair, brown eyes; red gem))
  11. Genua: Another council member; the so-called council leader. ((Bronze skin, red hair, gray eyes; gray gem))   **DECEASED**
  12. Niva: Another council member; she was tutored by Lord Ganondorf before his fall. ((Bronze skin, red hair, black eyes; white gem))  **DECEASED**
  13. Kallie: Another council member; she was tutored by Lord Ganondorf before his fall. ((Bronze skin, red hair, brown eyes; orange gem))  **DECEASED**
  14. Marellena: the tribe’s current medic. ((bronze skin, red hair, green eyes, red-pink stone))
  15. Lasila: Marellena’s apprentice. Medic-in-training. ((bronze skin, red hair, black eyes, violet stone))



 

2)    There are also a lot of my assumptions about Gerudo culture, biology and such…

  * There’s a special ability that most Gerudo adult women have that allow them to become pregnant without the assistance of a male; the exact specifics I’m not going to go into but know that it does not produce an exact ‘clone’ of the mother. These pregnancies last 6 months instead of the normal 9. These women can also become pregnant the normal way (with the normal 9 months).
  * The exception to the above rule is the tribe’s spiritualist, whose duties come first and thus is not capable of the same. The only way the spiritualist can become pregnant is the natural way: through intercourse. The pregnancy lasts the standard 9 months.
  * The Gerudo women refer to each other as their ‘sisters’ even when they’re not actually related. Every woman is a ‘sister’ to every other. Blood siblings are referred to as ‘blood sisters’. The word is meant to convey the strong bond between the tribe; it has been used since the beginnings of the Gerudo.
  * Gerudos who are born out of the union between a tribe woman and an outside man are referred to a ‘halflings’: their skin is generally a bit lighter and hey have odd eye colors. They can also have odd hair colors or a lighter less vibrant red. They are looked down upon by the ‘pure’ women who believe these halflings are less durable and capable of work.
  * While the main deity of the Gerudo is the goddess Din, she is so highly revered that the majority of the Gerudo do not pray to her unless it is a matter of extreme importance out of respect and reverence. Generally, the base prayers to Din are done by the King or the Lady – and these two are the only ones who can ask Din for everyday things. For other matters, the tribe relies on a bunch of smaller deities in animal forms.
  * There are three main “shrines” to the deities. There is a small communal shrine that anyone can use which is in the desert close to the fortress. There’s a shrine with a holy spring which is generally used by the spiritualist (although the King & Lady may use it if they wish) which is further into the desert. The final shrine is the Desert Palace itself, with a special room for worship to be used by the King & Lady alone.
  * Spieka - a traditional Gerudo instrument, a sort of cross between an ocarina and a flute. It’s a woodwind traditional carved from a certain tree. Mothers teach their daughters to play at young ages. It’s played for celebrations and during important ceremonies.
  * Gems refer to the head decorations wore by all the tribe. They start off as colorless tones and then change color upon the 5th birthday of the wearer to reflect talent area; each color refers to a different area of expertise.



                                         i.    Black & Gray: Stealth & Thievery

                                        ii.    Pink: Spiritual Prowess; God Connections

                                      iii.    Red & Orange: Combat Skills

                                       iv.    Yellow: Runic Magic

                                        v.    Green: Elemental Magic

                                       vi.    Blue: Prophecy / Foretelling

                                     vii.    Purple & Indigo: Animal Connections

                                   viii.    White: Summoning

                                       ix.    Brown: Strength/Physical Prowess

  * While the king, in this case Ganondorf, is absent or incapable to rule the tribe is supposed to be run by the “Lady” – who can be the King’s birth mother or his bride: an un-wedded lover does not count. In the case there is no Lady, a council of 5 senior Gerudo women are in charge and make decisions for the tribe as a group.
  * Work is done in rotations unless a specific skill is required (such as being a blacksmith or a healer); the rotational schedule is made by the council.



 

3)    Punishments, banishments, and confinements are also decided by the council. These actions require votes. The King’s word, however, is law and thus only his word is needed for any punishment.

  *  “The Pits” is a punishment of confinement and deprivement. A sister is lowered into a small cell with no windows or doors and the opening is sealed above them. They are to remain there in darkness alone with no food, water, or comforts for days at a time, as seen fit by the council depending upon the crime. The pits punishment requires a majority vote in favor (at least 3 of 5) from the council
  *   Execution is reserved usually for extreme cases. A unanimous 5 of 5 vote is needed to proceed with executing a sister.



 

4) Some Gerudo holidays/seasons/eventa are also briefly mentioned. They’re pretty self-explanatory…

  *  Feast of the Sun: Day long feast on the longest day of daylight in the year; thus day of the sun
  * Season of the Winds: Beginning of the stormy season with tons of sandstorms; its beginning is heralded by days and nights of strong winds.



 


	3. Chapter 1: Darkness

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> From Zephye's POV.

            She awoke to darkness, but then again that was no change for her at all. It was always dark in the pit cells. Dark in the morning, dark in the afternoon, dark in the evening and dark at night: it made sense as there were no windows or doors. Actually, there wasn’t much of anything down there except for dust, dirt, and steel bars. No food, no water, no light, no sounds others than the ones you made yourself, and no one else there to help you. It was the pits, literally.

            She had been there for what felt like forever, but it was probably only days, maybe even only hours – there was no way to tell. Everything ached, everything hurt. She was probably black and blue and probably red too, but there was no way to tell with no light. But she knew it hurt, she could fell that still at least. That pain and the growing one deep in her gut from hunger, from thirst.

            Why? Why did they hate her so? It was all she kept asking herself in her head. Maybe it was her ‘curse’, her ‘magic’, but then again…they had hated her long before that. Her ‘freakish’ abilities had just given then a greater reason to beat her, to hurt her, to demean her… She couldn’t help what she was. She could only be Zephye, no one else.

            She had hoped her talent in magic would be the thing to bring her closer to her ‘sisters’, but that hope was in vain. Only innocent Tzark, her only real friend, had thought her abilities were cool. Her sisters had hated her for it, scorned her for it, and beaten her bloody for it. She tried to from then on to never use it in front of them. For Tzark she did tricks and when she was alone at a task, she tried a bit, but never in front of them. It was difficult to control, even more so when she had to practice in secret.

Her emotions ruled her abilities; anger and fear brought it out more. So when Schala’s tormenting of her had taken on an even crueler twist by offending not only her but her mother as well, she couldn’t hold it in: the ice had just come. Schala for sure would never be brave enough to torment her again, but that action, that accidental attack on another sister had prompted the elders to act.

They had voted. A unanimous 5 of 5 was needed for execution; luckily for her Asyl has voted no. But imprisonment in the pits had only needed a majority and with only Asyl for her, her fate was sealed. It was only supposed to be for a few days. Just a few days.

Then she had awoken to find the cell next to her occupied by Asyl and she knew. Asyl would only be there for a few days, just long enough for the lack of food and water to kill her. Then they’d release Asyl as if nothing happened and just erase every mention of poor Zephye from every record. It was over; she was as good as dead. She had almost no energy left anyway.

Asyl had pleaded with her to stay strong, touching her fingertips, the only part she could reach, and has said that Guellena would help free them. But Zephye knew there was little slow Guellena could do to help them. It would take an act of the gods themselves to save them, to save her. With a sigh, she closed her eyes, letting the darkness envelop her once more. Perhaps the next time she awoke, it would be in the light of the next world.


	4. Chapter 2: Prayers In The Wind

 

Guellena waited until Hyperia had left the pit area before she emerged from her hiding place. When Asyl had failed to meet her, she had known something was wrong. But, she had never expected the council to go as far as to imprison Asyl to ensure Zephye’s fate. It really was going a step too far. Guellena knew she had to do something to help: Zephye had already been confined for three days – the poor girl wouldn’t last much longer with no food or water in such heat.

 

Guellena knew she was too weak to try and open the pits herself and she would probably be caught if she did try. No one else liked Zephye at all or cared enough for Asyl to risk their status in a rescue attempt besides Beda, but what could two people do? What else could she do?

 

With a heavy heart, Guellena ran off into the desert, heading for the small shrine the tribe often used for prayers to the deities. It seemed almost like a waste to have to resort to this, still something was better than nothing….right? Her feet moved at a feverish pace, faster than she ever thought she’d run before in all her life.

 

Finally, she was there. Kneeling before the altar, she turned straight to Din, straight towards their goddess. Lighting the candles, she began.

 

“Please” was all Guellena could manage to say “Please. Please.”

 

Again and again, she repeated her reverent wish in her head, muttering the sole word aloud. Again and again and again until Guellena lost track of time. It didn’t matter when her arms started to hurt or her neck became sore, she just continued on and on, eyes shut tightly.

 

There had to be something that could be done. Please, let this somehow help!

 

And then, suddenly, she was brought of her trance by a hand on her shoulder. With a start, she turned on her knees, looking up. Guellena’s blue eyes widened drastically. It was like Din herself had answered her feverant prayers. For a moment, she was speechless, and then Guellena dropped her head to a bow and clutched the ends of the fine red fabric in her small dirt hands.

 

“Please, you have to help her.” Guellena’s voice was only a horse whisper. “Please. They’re going to just leave her there to die. Please, you have to save her.”

 

Guellena felt her energy draining away with each word. She’d spent far too long hoping perhaps. But now, it seemed as if her prayers had been answered. She just had to make sure she was clear. But it was getting harder and harder to speak and she could feel the once tight grip she’d had on the fabric becoming slack. One more sentence, perhaps two.

 

“Please….save….Zephye………pits…….please …..ask……Beda…..”

 

And Guellena’s world faded to blackness.


	5. Chapter 3: Green, Yellow, and Red

 

“Please….save….Zephye………pits…….please.”

 

With these last words, the young girl in green fell to the dusty floor, hands slipping from the embroidered red fabric as she collapsed into a heap, completely exhausted. He regarded her with a quick look to ensure the girl was still breathing then turned his attention to the room. Candles burnt almost all the way down and grooves deep in the earth spoke to a long session. That same word whispered again and again, like a psalm calling him to stop on his way. She must have been truly desperate.

 

With a half groan, he turned and exited. The woman was in no immediate danger; she could waist a few minutes until he sent another to fetch her body and bring her back to bed. In the meantime, there were other problems apparently.

 

Walking further into the cool night, Ganondorf took a moment to fix his cloak. Thankfully the girl’s hand hadn’t permanently stained it. But still, he had just managed to return to Hyrule and already there was some kind of issue among the girls. He supposed the next part was to find this…Beda and ask her.

 

The journey back was quick and quiet; it was far too easy to sneak past the guards with his shadow magic cloak over him and ascend the stairs. The rooms were labeled and luckily Beda’s room was on the first living level. Sneaking inside through the door cracks with his magic, he found Beda sitting on her bed. The poor girl almost fainted when she suddenly showed himself. He said to her only a single word.

 

“Talk.”

 

The girl paused, gaping at him, for a moment, then seemed to quickly regain herself and state the issue for him with ease.

 

~*~*~*~

 

            Ganondorf headed for the pits as fast as he could under his shadow cloak. Something certainly didn’t add up. Beda hadn’t know all the specifics, but she had known enough o inform him of that much. A six year old confined to the pits – unheard of. The fact that it had been the second choice under execution – preposterous! Still, it was the truth. Even more so, the council’s decision to imprison Asyl was another big shock: why were they goin through all this trouble over this little kid. Just what had this child done that been so unspeakable that she deserved, in their eyes, to die?

 

            Whatever the case, it didn’t matter. He was going to free both of them: the child and Asyl and then determine for himself if any action should be taken. When he arrived at the pits field, he noted three guards, no doubt placed by the council. It was easy to appear before them and order two of them to fetch the unconscious Guellena and return her to the medic. The third he instructed to go to the medic and have her send down two others to the site, and then to go to the council chamber and inform the other four that he had returned and that they were to remain in their meeting room until his orders said otherwise. The three took off in a hurry, unwilling to linger and displease him. It left Ganondorf alone in the fields.

 

            There were two sealed doors. Easily ripping open the first one, he descended in a single leap. With a magic flare in hand, it didn’t take long to find Asyl. The girls’ eyes widened at the sight of him, but then she protested as he picked her up.

 

“Not me….get Zephye…”

 

He silenced her with a look and quickly hefted the two of them out of the pit. He was pleased to see the two medic assistants had arrived and quickly handed Asyl over to them, with the warning that he would be following soon with another patient. He was at the second pit already as they took off, wrenching the cover off and descending once more.

 

The second pit smelled worse, the obvious sign that the occupant had been here a while. At the end of the tunnel at last he found the girl, curled in a corner. The tiny thing was almost skin and bones and for just a moment, he thought he was too late. But luck was on his side; she was still breathing albeit barely. Gingerly, he picked the small girl up and hurried out: she needed immediate treatment: that much was obvious.

Carrying her carefully as he raced back to the medic he took a moment to study her: bronze skin like a normal girl, red hair like a normal girl, green gemstone…? Green. Elemental magic? Unlikely. Most likely it was a shade of blue and under the moonlight and covered in grime it only appeared to be green. Far more likely.

 

He arrived at the medic’s abode in almost no time at all. The woman was already waiting for him, a bed prepared for the young girl in his arms. She didn’t seem too shocked at who it was he had brought, but then again Asyl’s arrival had probably told the wise woman all she had needed to know.

 

Speaking of Asyl, the girl was propped up in a small bed in the corner. Leaving the medic and her assistants to the young child, he joined Asyl by the corner. She didn’t look too bad. Asyl seemed to follow his line of thoughts for she answered before he asked the question on his mind.

 

“Few bruises, some small cuts, and a little dehydrated: I’ll live.”.

 

He nodded once to show he’d understood then grabbed a nearby chair and swung it around sitting on it reversed to face Asyl.

 

“Tell me everything.”

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

He could hardly believe what Asyl was telling him but the subtle spell he’d placed over the room upon entering was telling him she wasn’t lying to him. He hadn’t been mistaken: her stone was green. Magic...

 

A child with magic: a very rare occurrence. What was even more unbelievable was the treatment she had received. Shunned, beaten, berated, abandoned, hated, feared…the list was full of horrors. Why? He didn’t have a clear answer for that; Asyl didn’t have a clear answer for that.

 

Whatever had started the chain, the reactions she had gotten had only made things worse. Magic responded to emotions, a reason he always tried to be calm. Being tormented day after day had wreaked havoc on Zephye’s emotional state and as a result her power had spiraled out of control under duress, thus the two ‘accidents’. The negative vibes after those accidents had only made it worse still.

 

He didn’t understand why. Kallie should have known, Niva too. Both had trained under him, both had received knowledge about magic and magic use. Both should have known antagonizing the young girl would only make things worse…and yet neither had done anything. Why? Asyl had the answer for him.

 

“They think she’s a Halfling.” Asyl stated, then seeing his look elaborated. “Most of the others, that is. They see her as a Halfling and thus most likely feel she’s not worth the time.”

 

A Halfling? Highly unlikely. Halfling were tiny little things, weak little things. No Halfling would have lasted 6 days in the pit. Halflings were usual identified due to odd hair colorations, like brown or black or orange-red, or by lighter skin. Zephye was neither: her skin was as bronze as any other full sister’s, her hair just as red. The confusion must have shown on his face for Asyl was commenting again.

 

“It’s her eyes.” Asyl choked out as she reached for her water. After a long drink, she continued. “Did you see?”

 

He shook his head. Her eyes? He had never heard of a Halfling identified by eyes… What about her eyes: the shape, the pupils, the color?

 

“Not blue like the sky or brown like the earth. Not gray like the storm or even black like the night.” Asyl muttered softly. “But rather as luminous and shining as the sun: goldenrod.”

 

He dropped his gaze to the floor. Goldenrod? Eyes of goldenrod? Magic? There was a suspicion growing in the back of his mind - a very persistent nagging one. He needed to ask another question to either confirm it or dispel it. But when he looked up, Asyl was grinning like the grand prize winner of a ten million rupee giveaway.

 

“Her mother, yes?” Asyl asked, eyes glittering under the light of the candles. “That’s what you want to know, isn’t it?”

 

He managed a grin; Asyl was not an expert in stealth and more so in interrogation for naught. “Yes.”

 

“There could only be one to have such a daughter.” Asyl told him, holding up a sole finger.

 

The grin faded off his face, melting into nothingness: a blank expression taking its place. It couldn’t be… “You mean.”

 

Asyl nodded.

 

A frown took the blank expression’s place. It couldn’t be… It couldn’t be… It couldn’t be… could it?

 

Asyl’s grin couldn’t get any wider. Obviously, she had seen this coming. The reason the council had added Asyl to the pits was becoming crystal clear. As his eyes met Asyl’s she spoke a single name.

 

“Eridell.”

 

With that name, all sensible and reasonable thoughts fled as a deep and guttural hatred bloomed from deep in his cheat and swelled quickly, consuming all other thought. Without a word to Asyl or to the medic still working in the next room, he rose and thundered from the room, heading upwards to gift to four fools pain beyond anything they had ever imagined before. As if to pay homage, the sun chose that moment to rise above the horizon and shower his form in red light.


	6. Chapter 4: Fools, Such Wretched Fools

 

            Hyperia was nervous. Actually nervous was an understatement as to how Hyperia currently felt but she couldn’t think of a word to accurately describe the nervous-nauseous-foreboding-dreading feeling welling up in her gut. The past few days had been hectic to say the least. And while Genua, Kallie, and Niva were currently celebrating she felt like doing anything but.

 

            She should have felt happy, felt relieved but she didn’t. They had finally managed to ‘deal’ with their little “problem” (or who everyone felt was the problem), namely one little Halfling named Zephye. Said girl was currently rotting away in the pits. The trouble had been Asyl, their fifth council member. Asyl had defended the girl from the start and had been the one who voted against execution. Silently, she had been a bit happy it had been Asyl who voted before her who had spoken up: she didn’t much like the idea of execution herself but unlike Asyl she was not about to speak up and risk her neck for a Halfling. Asyl’s ote ‘no’ had made her unnecessary…thank the gods.

 

So, when Asyl had gone to rest early one night dear Genua had come up with the idea to punish Asyl as well, to ensure that ‘the problem’ wouldn’t be retrieved from the pits on the scheduled day but rather left there to rot. Kallie and Niva had agreed immediately: she had agreed knowing if she didn’t she’d be joining Asyl.

 

            Then Asyl had said all those things as she had prepared the pit for her. All those words and empty threats… or so she had thought. But the more Hyperia thought on it, the more she began to dread that maybe Asyl had been right all along. Maybe there was something she was missing after all. There had to be, if Asyl was so confident. What was it? What had they not seen that Asyl had?

 

            She went back over all the things she knew about the Halfling Zephye again and again. What was it? Why was Asyl so sure? There had to be something to it. And then, as if by fate’s design, the wind blew stronger for just a moment, sending her papers flying into the air. Kallie and Niva both laughed, half drunk; Genua was passed out on the window seat. Hyperia chased them all down and then returned to her seat with a sigh. She was about to lay them back down on the table when she realized only once piece of paper hadn’t blown away. Curious, she picked it up and began to reread it.

 

            It was Zephye’s physical documentation listing heigjht, weight, hair color, eye color, and so on. Nothing special it seemed. Hyperia poured herself another glass of wine as she tried to relax. Hyperia skimmed over all of it until she reached the bottom. A single sentence was written in the empty box.

 

Mother: Eridell

 

            And Hyperia dropped the wine glass. Kallie and Niva were too out of it to care, Genua was asleep, but now Hyperia was frozen still. She understood what Asyl had been going on about. Nine months not six, Eridell, and magic.

 

‘Oh heavens,’ Hyperia thought to herself, holding her now shaking hands between her bare thighs. ‘What have we done?’

 

As if to answer her, the guard from the pits arrived panting and flushed with the single piece of news that Hyperia now dreaded to hear most: their King had returned.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

It was morning now. Hyperia watched the sun rise slowly from beyond the horizon and cast its morning deep red glow across the desert with dread in her heart, her hands still shaking. Kallie and Niva were huddled in the corner, whispering to each other with excited grins. Genua was practically prancing around the room; all three were eagerly anticipating the arrival of King Ganondorf to meet them, to reward them!

 

Hyperia now knew better. She didn’t want him to come: his coming spelled the deaths of the four of them, just as Asyl had said. There would be no second chances, no excuses: nothing.

 

They had tried to kill his Princess…and for that, they all deserved to die.

 

Hyperia’s thoughts were interrupted by the banging open of the door and thus the arrival of King Ganondorf. Kallie and Niva drove to be the first at his feet; Genua sauntered over with a bow and a smirk. Hyperia hung her head in shame as she sank to her knees. She had seen the rage in his eyes that the other eager three had missed.

 

This was not going to be pleasant….no, not pleasant at all.

 

Now Genua, Kallie, and Niva seemed to at last realize something was amiss since their King had yet to speak. Niva gave an undignified squawk and recoiled backwards slightly. Hyperia couldn’t see what it was that had caused such a reaction but she could feel it: fire. Fire magic was burning in his palms. She looked sideways to see the color drain from Genua’s face. There was a sudden rustling of motion as Genua, Niva, and Kallie all rose as one and started to flee. Hyperia hung her head down low: there was no escape from their fate…best to just sit and wait for it to come.

 

With fire and brimstone.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

“Stand.”

 

The command echoed around the now almost barren room and Hyperia felt her legs obeying the order without hesitation. She was the last one. She had heard as Kallie, then Niv, and finally Genua had met their untimely demises at the hand of their King and flames. Now it was her turn.

 

“You should be very thankful, Hyperia, that Asyl was still conscious when I freed her last night.”

 

He head was still down, eyes on the floor. She could hear his voice and his footsteps as he circled around him. Still, she said nothing. What was there to say?

 

“Asyl has informed me of an…odd occurrence. That after the vote you five had to try and execute poor little Zephye she had to clean up…and lo and behold that there were not one but two votes no… Asyl believes that vote to be yours. You were after Asyl and thus the only vote that was not heard since Asyl’s ‘no’ vote ended the debate.”

 

The footsteps stopped as he stood before her. “You voted ‘no’ like Asyl. But you voted ‘yes’ for both the imprisonment of Asyl and her as well – why?”

 

Hyperia rose her face up, willing herself to speak but the words seemed caught in her throat. Subconsciously, her eyes move to the side where just hours ago Kallie, Niva, and Genua had been partying away. King Ganondorf seemed to understand the simple gesture.

 

“They outnumbered you. They were willing to discard Asyl who was their close friend – why not you too who they only dealt with because they had to? Is that it?”

 

Hyperia nodded numbly.

 

“You are very lucky Hyperia: Asyl has asked for you to be spared.”

 

Her knees gave way and she found herself on the floor, almost in tears. There was the slight shuffling of footsteps around her as King Ganondorf headed for the door.

 

“It would do you well to earn the forgiveness of the other you have wronged, less you wish her use you for her target practice.”

 

And with that he left Hyperia alone to her tears.


	7. Chapter 5: Blood Bonds

Ganondorf, having dealt with his traitorous council, found himself returning to the medical area despite the nagging in the back of his mind that the tribe should come first, not one little girl. Nevertheless, it was to the medic’s abode his feet carried him and Ganondorf found that he didn’t quite mind as much as he thought he had. In the side room, Asyl was asleep at last; Guellena occupied the second bed and was also fast asleep. The third bed remained empty.

Curious, he returned to the main area. The medic was resting on a stool; the assistant was gently wrapping Zephe’s left arm in bandages. Even cleaned up and treated she looked awful. Her breathing was shallow and irregular and he knew without even having to look at the medic what the girl’s prognosis would be.

“Out”

The simple word sent both the medic and her assistant into the back room and left him alone with the unconscious little girl: _his_ unconscious little girl. The though almost sent him into another rage, but he couldn’t allow his mind to drift: there were more important matters at hand such as making sure Zephye survived this ordeal.

Pulling over the high stool from the corner, he sat upon it overlooking her and gathered his focus. Healing magic wasn’t his specialty at all, but he had dabbled in it enough to know how to heal minor bruises and some internal injuries. It took a lot of stamina to perform it correctly, stamina he didn’t know if he had after his escapades with the council and flames…but he had to try. Otherwise he just might lose Zephye.

He didn’t want to think about that option. Not at all.

He spent quite some time gathering his focus and power to him; then reached for the young girl’s small hand and held it between his. With a deep exhale, he dove into the task of healing her injuries one by one.

~~~~~~~~

With a long sigh, he leaned back, thoroughly exhausted. He was unsure of how much time had passed while he had delved but he had gone until he could go on no longer. He had healed the vast majority of Zephye’s injuries this way: a few scrapes and bruises would remain as well as some soreness and tenderness. She would be in bed for a few days, but she would live. Relaxing for a moment, he glanced out the window and wasn’t too surprised to see it was almost nightfall again.

He rested in the seat for a few minutes more, at least until he could breathe evenly again and the perspiration of his forehead had faded. With a grunt he rose to his feet then returned the stool to the corner. He momentarily stuck his head into the back room to allow the medic and her assistant to return back to their jobs of tending to Guellena and Asyl: Zephye he picked up into his own arms and carried her out.

The route was one he traveled often: his personal quarters were at the top of the fortress. The door was magically sealed to disallow anyone from entering when he was away. It was usually an unnecessary precaution: the sisters knew better than to come uninvited, less the wish to anger him. Now he’d have to find the time to adjust that precaution so it didn’t lock Zephye out…or in. Neither would be a good option.

A touch of his hand upon the door opened it, a wave of his arm lit the candles along the walls and a second shut the door behind him. The suite of rooms was relatively well kept: spells he had imbued into the walls themselves prevented dust from gathering anywhere and walls from crumbling due to weather or age.

Every room served a purpose for him: a library for reading and researching, a laboratory for making potions and testing spells, a sitting area for relaxation and guests, a small bathroom for the obvious, and a lavish bedroom used for sleep and other entertaining activities. Where was he going to stick Zephye? He supposed there was always room to expand: to added another suite of rooms off to the side. His lavish living area didn’t fill the entire top and magic made anything possible really. For now though, she’d have to rest on his bed until plans could be made, refined, and then enacted.

Finding a place for Zephye on the bed wasn’t difficult at all: his bed was large enough to fit six horizontally and long enough so that if six sleep on each end there would still be room between their feet in the middle. Opening the tail end of the bed, he gently laid the still unconscious girl down on the fine silk sheets and then carefully covered her in all the blankets and quilts: the desert got quite cold at night after all.

With Zephye safely in bed, he returned to the main sitting area, making sure to extinguish the candles in the bedroom as to not wake her. He spent a few minutes making some preliminary adjustments to the wards around the rooms: the final adjustments needed Zephye awake. As a second thought, he sent a note down to a messenger to have some good clothes procured for her for when she woke. Only then did he realize just how tired he was.

A quick dinner of mostly fruit, a quick shower using water heated with his magic, and then into more lose-fitting night ensemble. Extinguishing the rest of the candles he walked in blackness back to the bedroom, knowing the path by heart. He opened the head of the bed, the opposite side where Zephye was resting, and tucked himself in. Come morning, he would worry about others thing but for now, things were looking good.

 


	8. Chapter 6: Pink Sunrise

 

It was warm. Such an odd feeling really…truly odd. In the desert, you were either normally too hot or too cold; warm was a rarity – it was like saying just right. Just right was almost impossible for someone like her, someone unwanted.

 Zephye had never been warm before. The oddity of the feeling was enough to rouse her from her sleep. Perhaps she was in the next world, in the beyond? Was the beyond supposed to feel warm? She would never know unless she woke. Slowly, she opened her eyes.

Her body felt sore and stiff…strange. You weren’t supposed to feel uncomfortable or pain or really anything once you had moved into the next world. Gingerly, she pushed herself up onto elbows and looked around in blackness. It was dark and she couldn’t see anything around her. She could feel though. She was on a bed. It was a far more comfortable bed than her rickety cot or even the pillows she had once rested upon when mother had still been around. Soft and smooth, like silk?

From her place on this bed, she could make out the vague outlines of furniture: none looked familiar. Craning her head, she could see a window and through it stars: very familiar stars. It was still the desert, still Hyrule. Somehow, she was still among the living. Maybe Guellena had done something to save her or maybe Asyl had broken free?

But still, it was even odder then. Why did she feel so well? She could tell by the stars it had only been seven days. Six nights in the pits and now one here: so why did she not feel so horrid? She should feel much worse (technically she should probably be dead) so why?

And then, the more pressing question, where was she? She knew the medic’s quarters well enough to know she wasn’t there. Marellena’s beds were always dry and scratchy. Lasila tried to help make them comfortable with some hand-made blankets and better pillows, but this was too comfy to be those.

It almost reminded her of mother’s rooms. Eridell’s bed of pillows had been very comfy; lumpy but comfy. She missed her mother terribly, but Eridell wasn’t present anymore: she was a statue. A curse by a rogue monster had turned her (and several other sisters as well) to stone. No remedy any of them had tried to use had helped them and, in the end, they were forced to leave their sisters as stone and wait and hope that when their King returned he would be able to save them.

This wasn’t her mother’s room either. So, where was she? Maybe it didn’t matter. Warm meant safe in the end, didn’t it? She was healed, comfortable, safe, and warm. Smiling to herself, Zephye laid her head back down on the pillow.

The sun was just beginning to rise over the dunes in the distance: a wonderful pinkish-peach that reminded her of her mother sparkling stone.


	9. Chapter 7: Awakening in Confinement

Zephye yawned as she awoke yet again. From the window she could see the sun was now high in the sky, no longer the lovely shade it had been before. She had fallen back asleep again she realized and no one had woken her. Stretching slightly and still rubbing the sleep from her eyes, she sat up slowly, aware that her body was sore. Upon closer examination, she saw only bruises and a few scrapes. 

What in the world? Where were her gashes and scars? What had happened to all of her broken bones? Why didn’t anything really hurt anymore? Had someone…actually helped her for once? So strange – no one ever had really helped her before besides her mother. Asyl had often tried to and had almost always failed. Has Asyl succeeded at last in saving her? Zephye’s gut said no.

Ignoring the dull throbbing in her limbs (she had felt much, much worse on more than one occasion), Zephye got to her feet and decided to see just where she was. She was currently standing in what appeared to be a bedroom – but whoever owned the room had taken everything to the extreme.

The bed was enormous (Zephye though half the sisters could probably all fit in it) and covered with a multitude of very expensive looking silks and satins. The two dressers in the room towered over her head with six drawers each; the mirrors were too high for her to see into. Even the chairs in the room were too big for her to get onto unless she pulled herself upward.

She could only reach high enough to open the bottom two drawers of each of the two dressers. One drawer held socks, more socks than anyone could never need to own! Another drawer was filled with bandanas, their colors faded by the desert sun. The next drawer, on the next dresser, had a locked box inside of it (Zephye tried to pick the lock to no avail). The final drawer was filled with sleep pants in various shades of black, gray, and brown.

The closet nearby was stuffed with clothing – but all of it was hung far too high for her to reach. Zephye could easily stand under the lowest of the clothing and only be able to just touch the bottom by jumping. There was a high shelf above the clothes that she couldn't see at all. On the bottom was an assortment of shoes. The size was so big that that Zephye could fit both feet into just one shoe.

Zephye wandered into the next connection room which was a bathroom. A tub large enough to fit multiple people dominated the room, laid with black and gold tile. There was a small basin for a sink and another mirror that was too high for Zephye to look into. She did manage to pull herself up onto the toilet to release the pressure in her bladder. But the sink basin was too high to reach to wash her hands.

The next room was a large sitting area. Three luxurious feeling couches occupied the center, all made of fine fabric. They were softer than the bed Zephye had been left to sleep on every night. Also on the couches were some fluffy pillows and, over the side of one, a lush afghan was draped that smelled like cinnamon. Between them was an ornate rug of an elaborate design and a fine marble table. There was an empty cup resting on the table; Zephye sniffed it but she couldn't tell what it had previously held.

A passageway from that room led to a library with towering bookcases that reached a tall ceiling, more than four times Zephye’s height. Most of the books were filled with languages Zephye couldn't read at all. The few she could read the words in she couldn't understand what was being said at all. There was also a tall desk that Zephye couldn't reach the top of and an equally as tall chair she didn't manage to climb onto.

Heading back to the sitting area, Zephye tried a door and found herself in a odd room. Bottles filled with different colored liquids littered multiple shelves around the room. Long tables were covered in bottles filled with powders and odd looking things. She recognized some plants and some bugs, but other odd looking things she couldn't name outnumbered those by far. There was also a huge pot in the room’s center, but no food was inside it. Disappointed, Zephye left the odd room alone.

She headed back into the sitting room. Only one door was left unopened. Zephye reached for it and immediately stepped back: the handle had shocked her! She steadied herself and grabbed it again, holding on despite the shock to try and pull the door open: it didn’t budge. She tried pushing it: no luck.

In a slight panic, she pulled back, her hands red with small blisters. On the verge of crying at the idea of being trapped inside this room, Zephye returned to the couches and climbed up on one. Covering herself with the afghan, she laid down, eyes on the door, and tried to relax as she waited for someone to come. 

She found the comfort of the couch did nothing to aid her in that endeavor.


	10. Chapter 8: Eyes of the Sun

Ganondorf wearily trudged back towards his quarters. He was exhausted…and it was only just past noon. The sisters had all wanted to see him and then all wanted to hug him and then all wanted to kiss him and more! After two hours of that, it was a slew of ‘minor’ problems he had to fix – all of which were seemingly on opposite corners from one another. He had forgotten how tiring they could be. He had escaped with a large bowl of fruit and a pot of soup before the ladies had roped him into having lunch with them too. Right now what he needed was a nice, quiet lunch – and to check on Zephye.

When he reached the door, the wards told him someone had tried to open it. The magic couldn’t tell him who, when, or from what side though. Groaning, he dismissed the alert and headed in. The first thing he noticed was Zephye asleep on the couch, well more like restlessly asleep. She was turning and moving about, as if she were having a nightmare. The second thing of notice was her red hands – that answered his question about the door. 

Sighing, Ganondorf shut and locked the door behind him, then left the food on the marble table and headed into the laboratory for a salve for her hands. After poking around on his disorganized shelves he found it and returned to the sitting area only to find Zephye awake and eating his lunch, well the fruit at least. The girl turned immediately towards him as he shut the door behind him with a large “thunk”.

Looking at her, it wasn’t her vibrant mangled red hair or the bruised bronze skin or the way her cheekbones looked exactly like his did only softer that caught his attention – it was her eyes. As Asyl had said, they were goldenrod – the color of the sun: the same as his. But while his reflected power and confidence, her eyes showed only pain and fear and little spark of defiance. She did not hold the gaze long, in fact it was broken almost immediately as those golden eyes went from his face, to the floor, to the food on the table, and then to the pear half-eaten in her hand. Her small bruised hand put it carefully back on the table and she slunk into the corner of the couch, knees to her chin, and tried to make herself look even smaller.

This wasn’t going to be easy. Without a word, he crossed over to the couch. Deciding against words for the moment, he was well aware even his ‘gentle’ voice could sound a bit angry, he grabbed on arm by her wrist and held it up. Her eyes flickers to him for a second, but Zephye did not flinch nor try to pull her arm free. Maybe it wasn’t too bad. With his free hand, he applied the salve to her held hand: the cream immediately made the blisters vanish. He let her arm go and waited.

Zephye took a moment to look at her hand, turning it over and over again as if she couldn’t believe the little bubbles had vanished; her posture relaxed slightly (ever so slightly). With a half-gaze hidden behind her messy bangs, she raised her other hand on her own: Ganondorf gladly salved this hand too. Once that was done, he walked away momentarily to put it back so he could find it again next time. When he returned, Zephye had uncurled herself a bit: her feet were back on the floor.

Ganondorf made his way back over; this time she didn’t flinch as he walked past her. He scooped out the half-eaten pear from the basket and dropped it into her open hands on her lap. Goldenrod eyes shot up to look at him, wide and quivering.

“Eat.”

There was a momentary pause from her at the command and her mouth opened slightly, as if she were about to say something or ask something but just as quickly as it had appeared, it vanished. The gaze dropped back to her knees and she gave a stiff jerky nod. There was a long pause before she picked the fruit up to her mouth with trembling hands and took a bite.

Satisfied for the moment that she was going to eat, Ganondorf walked back into the lab and to the high cabinet in the corner. From the top shelf, he gathered some dishes and utensils: specifically two bowls, two spoons, two plates, and one very sharp knife. When he returned to the sitting area, Zephye was still eating her pear slowly. He lifted the basket off the table without a sound and set to work with the knife.

In hindsight, he was glad he had grabbed the biggest one – there was enough to let Zephye have lunch too. He hadn’t expected her to be awake and up, but it was a pleasant surprise: the girl was more resilient than he had given her credit for. That was a very good thing indeed. He let his thoughts dominate his mind as he quickly cut up and divided the fruit into the two plates: three-quarters of each on the larger plate for himself and a ¼ of each on the smaller plate for Zephye. 

She probably wasn’t going to be able to eat too much, unlike him. Even with only ¼ of each, it still made an almost full plate; his was a towering pile. He needed a lot of food; more so when he did work with the sisters. Seeing she had finished her pear, he placed her plate onto her lap. Once again, the goldenrod eyes that mirrored his own shot up to look at him, wide and filled with disbelief. He nodded slightly and she actually smiled for a second before she went back to her plate. 

He took mental notes as he watched her try the different fruits and nuts, obviously she had never tried most of them. The silky pear she had eaten earlier had obviously been the most familiar of the fruits. He found she liked wild oranges, red barberries, desert peaches, desert almonds, yucca, jujube, dragonfruit, islay, desert limes, karir, nara, and horned melon. She ate the marula, mongonga nuts, akaat, apple cactus, and nsala too, although she seemed to enjoy those less. Zephye immediately spit out the cardonya fruit and the nitraria fruit too. She ate the figs, wattleseeds, raisins, and dates with a cringe. She poked the prickly pear piece a few times before trying it, but eventually ate the whole piece as well as the cactus pear (obviously pears were a favorite of hers). She eventually stopped, leaving three pieces of fruit untried on her plate. He gave her a look and without a word, she went back to them. The bitter apple went down easily; the huaraco was spit out. Zephye still wouldn’t try the last one; she sniffed it then made a face a pushed it aside. He almost laughed: namib tsamma wasn’t his favorite either.

With the fruit done, he handed her a bowl of soup. It didn’t take any encouragement for her to dive into the creamy concoction and finish the whole bowl in record time. With lunch over, he beckoned the girl to the door. A quick spell (and a quick little cut) keyed her into the room’s barrier wards. He gave her some basic instructions (don’t touch this, don’t bring anyone else here, ect.) then told Zephye she was allowed to leave and wander about, but that she was to be back here before sunset. Confusions shone in her goldenrod eyes, but she didn’t ask. With a scruff of her hair and a comment to ‘stay safe’ he left through the door for what he was sure would be a long afternoon of working with the sisters. 

To his surprise, he found himself worrying over Zephye (and the trouble she might get into while he was away) as he got further and further away from the room. He was turning into a mother hen…good grief. With a mental note to check on where Zephye’s aura was every once and a while, he greeted Beda at the stables and began his afternoon of work.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, there's some mentions of some fruits and nuts in this chapter. All the things listed are desert plants: they all really exist and are all edible! Rather than make up some names for some food, I used real ones. I have no idea what most of it tastes like, so I kinda guessed. XD


	11. Chapter 9: Unlikely Friends

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A spieka (spee-A-kah) is my invention. It’s supposed to be a traditional Gerudo instrument, a sort of cross between an ocarina and a flute. It’s a woodwind traditional carved from a certain tree. Mothers teach their daughters to play at young ages. It’s played for celebrations and during important ceremonies.

Zephye waited for an hour before she left the room. Her head was still spinning with so many questions. She didn’t understand why their king had helped her, was keeping her in what were surely his rooms, and why he seemed to care. She had almost asked when he had given her the silky pear she had half eaten before realizing just whose food she’d taken – but she had shut her mouth. Words never came out right for her when she was nervous: the last thing she wanted was for him to be mad at her.

The one thing that she had wanted to ask about the most was his eyes: they were goldenrod too! Schala had always teased her about her ‘weird’ eyes; a lot of the other girls had laughed too. Her mother had always told her her eyes were beautiful, but Zephye had never seen that. Why hadn’t she mentioned that their lord king’s were the same? Surely, no one would have laughed had they known the implications of that!

She had waited an hour, mulling these things over in her head, before she realized the day – it was a Thursday! Borrowing a small basket from the library area, she had headed out towards the river area. For a while she gathered jujubes and red barberries until the basket was full. Then, carefully, she made her way to the great canyon. Far below, the river that went through Hyrule raged. With practiced ease, she climbed down to the bottom bank, to a small alcove in the side of the rock. She grabbed her small red spieka from her pocket and began to play a basic tune. She didn’t get too far before a splash interrupted her. With a smile she stood and made her way to the edge by the river to say hello.

Tzark had been her friend forever. He was a half-zora, half-hylian boy of her age that Zephye had met when Eridell had still be around. Unlike her, Tzark was pale, almost white, with light blonde hair and a small head fin. His fingers and toes were slightly webbed; his arms held small fins. Unlike most Zoras, he wore clothing (usually a blue sleeveless shirt, gray shorts, and black boots). Tzark was a great swimmer; he could even breathe underwater. Zephye couldn’t swim at all, but then again Tzark didn’t last too long in the hot desert sun either!

Despite their differences, the two were a lot alike. Both only had one parent: Eridell had never told Zephye about her father, so Zephye had always assumed like most sisters she had none while Tzark only had his mother (His dad was off somewhere and Tzark couldn’t’ remember having veer seen him in person before). They both loved music: Zephye played her spieka while Tzark played a guitar. They both could do a little magic; Zephye had her out-of-control-spells while Tzark used enchanted arrows. But most of all, Zephye and Tzark both loved adventure. They both wanted to go on adventures together, exploring places and finding treasure. It was what they talked about a lot.

Zephye had met Tzark after Schala and a group of her friends had tried to hurt her; the girls had pushed Zephye and she had accidentally fell over the edge of the canyon. She had fallen into the water and been swept downstream. Zephye hadn’t been able to swim; she couldn’t grab anything. Zephye thought she was going to die. She hadn’t: Tzark had saved her. Tzark had rescued her and brought her back to the canyon, back to where Eridell was waiting for her. Eridell had given Tzark a gift in thanks.

Since then, Zephye had routinely come here to meet Tzark and talk. Tzark had been there to listen to her when Eridell had been turned to stone, Zephye had been there for Tzark when his mother had gotten sick, Tzark had been comforting to Zephye when Schala had been really mean to her, Zephye had helped Tzark when the other Zoras had called him odd for his clothing choice, and Tzark had been there for Zephye when her magic had come out. Tzark hadn’t been afraid or weirded out; he had told her it was cool. Tzark was the only one who thought it was cool – Tzark had stayed her friend no matter what.

For the past few weeks, they’d been meeting every Thursday and trading food. Tzark loved jujubes and red barberries but he couldn’t walk in the desert to pick them due to both the heat and the sisters (who would attack his as an outsider). Zephye liked clams – fried clams to be precise. She couldn’t swim to find any of them though. So, she and Tzark switched. Zephye gathered berries and jujubes for Tzark and Tzark caught and fried clams for Zephye. Then they’d meet and switch treat, eat, and talk. 

After a hug, they both settled on the banks. Between munching on the fruit, Tzark talked about his home life in Zora’s Domain, namely his over-bearing mother and the head guard’s attempts to get him into sword fighting practice every day. Zephye started laughing at some of Tzark’s odd exploits and pranks. Even thought Zephye had eaten all the fruit and soup, she found herself hungry enough to eat the delicious clams too. When Tzark finished, Zephye started her story about the past week. The council vote, her imprisonment, how Asyl joined her, waking up, meeting their lord king and everything else she could think of. Tzark was very upset Zephye had gotten so badly hurt, but he was happy she was okay.

The two friends chatted for hours at the river banks about everything and anything. Zephye left her world behind and all her worries seemed to melt away. It was wonderful, even if it was only for a little while, to not have a care in the world. It was only when Tzark noted that the sun was setting and he needed to return home did Zephye realize she too was late. With a hug goodbye and a promise to meet next week, Tzark vanished under the water and Zephye headed back up the cliff. At the top, she stopped to catch her breath. It was a bit dark out – too dark for the time of day. 

Looking up, she realized it was a shadow and not just any shadow but the shadow of her Lord King Ganondorf…and he did not look too happy with her at all.


	12. Chapter 10: Oddities of Fate?

Ganondorf tried to resume a normal routine after his lunch. He had tried…and failed spectacularly. Despite the added protection of his rooms (and the barrier around the desert he had created when he had returned to ward away strong monsters) he still found himself searching for Zephye’s magical signature every few minutes, just to make sure the girl was still alright.

 

For a while after he left, her signature remained in his rooms and he wondered internally if he hadn’t been clear enough when he had explained she was allowed to leave the rooms. Then there was a particularly long work session with some sisters reinforcing the desert gate and watchtower and he was so focused, he couldn’t check. When he had a free second to look again, her signal had moved. At first the proximity to the gorge and the river below concerned him, but then memory recalled that on the canyon top in that area there was a plethora of berry bushes and shrubs. Recalling her preferences from lunch, he wrote off her presence there as her gathering a snack for herself or, in his opinion the more likely case, gathering fruit in an effort to ‘repay’ him for eating part of his lunch (even though he had let her do so gladly).  With a slight smile at the idea that she had ventured out at last, he went back to work and paid it no mind.

 

A long time later, when he next checked he found the signal had moved yet again. It was further away, closer to the river. Given the position, he knew she must be down on the gorge floor near the river. He was clueless as to why she would be there: perhaps it was a place she went to hide and escape from the others who picked on her? Her signature wasn’t stressed or giving out signs of distress, so he let it go. No reason to constantly look over her shoulder on the first day. He checked again frequently, but for the remainder of the afternoon her signal remained there.

 

When at long last it was almost sundown and his work had been completed. He started heading back to his rooms, expecting Zephye would already be back given their talk that morning. But when he checked the signal again, it was still in the same place it had been hours before: by the river. Perhaps she had gone there to rest or hide and then had fallen asleep in the shade? Her signal was strong, so it was unlikely that she had passed out or collapsed. Nevertheless, the fact that it wasn’t moving yet meant he’d have to go check on her himself.

 

When he got closer to the river, he could sense that there was not one but two signatures by the river. The second signature was weaker, as if the user had only a minimal amount of magical power. This presence intrigued him: it was not a signature he had sensed previously among the sisters. Who was this? Opting for stealth, he cast an illusion over himself to blend in the background like a chameleon and headed for the river quickly.

 

Contrary to his previous belief, Zephye wasn’t asleep – she was wide awake and talking to another…person. It looked like a Zora, but not quite a Zora…a half-breed. A more specifically a half-breed boy! Zephye was only 6! Why was she hanging out with a BOY! She was way too young to have a boyfriend!

The boy was pale white, lighter in color than most Zoras, but still had the traditional head fin and arm fins. Curiously he wore clothing, GREEN clothing. Even odder was the combination of the blonde hair and blue eyes. The green clothing, blue eyes, and blonde hair made his head go to a certain hero. But it couldn’t be, right? That would be too strange. It would be such an oddity for fate to have made the next generation of the hero Zephye’s friend. And besides, didn’t the hero marry his beloved Princess?

 

Oddly enough, Zephye and this boy seemed to be friends. He wondered how these two had met in the first place and why they were meeting at all. The Gerudo generally kept to their own: the sisters were the only friends or family they were allowed generally unless a sister found a suitable strong outsider to breed with. A friendship with an outsider was unheard of!

 

He was about to intervene and separate the two when they suddenly hugged and began saying good-bye to each other. The boy vanished under the waves of the river, heading back somewhere. Zephye quickly picked up a basket, which he recognized as one of his own, and hurried towards the ladder and then upwards.  He easily arrived ahead of her via levitation and stood near the top, dismissing his illusion. Zephye arrived at the top panting, then seemed to realize she was no longer alone and looked up.

 

He watched the look of confusion turn to fear and mentally berated himself for glaring at her. With a sigh, he took her hand and began to lead her back to the room. Throughout the walk, Zephye didn’t raise her eyes to look at him; her magic was chaotically swirling about inside. Foreseeing that she would accidentally strike out if this continued, he decided to speak.

 

“You are not in trouble.”

 

Zephye’s eyes raised to meet his for the first time since their walk had begun, looking stunned to say the least. There was still uncertainty swirling in those orbs so he elaborated.

 

“You are not in trouble. I merely came to find you since you had not yet returned. You remember I said by sunset, yes?”

 

The girl nodded slowly. Her magic had calmed a bit; it was still a bit chaotic though. Too chaotic for his liking, given her reputation.

 

“It becomes more dangerous outside after dark. The barrier only holds back the strong monsters: weaker ones can still make it through. In groups, they could overwhelm a sole person. Given your weakened state, I imposed the restriction to ensure your safety: nothing more. I do not wish to see anything bad happen to you again.”

 

The magic had calmed greatly by now. Zephye was looking up at him in wonder and curiosity.

 

“Why?” Her voice was small and quiet. “Why do you care about me?”

 

He sighed: he did not feel like sharing this vital bit of information right at this moment.

 

“In time, Zephye. All things will make sense in time.”

 

 

She looked at him with a frown.

 

“For now, it is time for dinner. Afterwards, perhaps you will explain how you have come to know that fish boy.”

 

Zephye’s lip quivered; it was very obvious that she did not wish to share this bit of information. With an inward sigh, he decided for a tried, tested, and true method: bribery.

 

“If you can retell this story for me, I can give you something great: dessert.”

 

Zephye’s golden eyes shone brightly at this and a huge grin spread across her face. Ganondorf smiled: bingo!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AN- So in this chapter, I mention Ganondorf ‘sensing’ Zephye’s magical signature (or aura) a lot. He’s a seasoned and powerful wizard, so I assumed he had the ability to be able to tell if another strong power moved into an area. With Zephye, because he’s related and in-tune with her, he can not only sense where she is but also be able to tell by how her internal magic is reacting how she’s doing. Just like heart-rate and breathing respond to danger, magic does too. Just as Zephye’s magic previously responded to others picking on her, it would also respond to imminent danger and heath crisis. So, by sensing Zephye’s magical signature, Ganondorf can not only tell where she is but also have an idea of how she’s doing (whether she’s in danger, hurt, or other emotional extremes). Also in this chapppie, we have Ganondorf dodging the question of why he cares and not revealing his relationship yet. Don’t worry; it’s coming soon. Just not yet…


	13. Chapter 11: Cake Tales

 

He lead her back towards his room, scanning the surroundings for incoming monsters until they reached the fortress. Most of the sisters were gathering for dinner; his appearance caused quite a stir. More so did the appearance of Zephye being led by the hand alongside him. He wasn’t sure who was garnering more stares: him or her. He noted with interest, that when she passed by a group of younger girls that there was one girl who looked at Zephye with a sort of sneer. In a surprising move, Zephye smiled and moved herself closer to him, almost rubbing against him at one point. He noted that the girl’s face turned from a sneer to anger in seconds and wondered who this little brat was.

 

All too soon they were back at his rooms, back in the sitting area. Zephye still chose the far corner of the couch, but she no longer sat hunched over in a ball. Her goldenrod eyes had lost some of the fear they had previously shown and were now more curious than anything else. They ate dinner (stew and a side of beef with bread) in silence; Zephye drank pear cider in contrast to his wine.

 

Once they were both full, he decided to bridge the gap of silence and get his answer to his earlier question.

 

“So, that boy…the Zora Halfling. How did you come to know that boy?”

 

“Tzark.”

 

He looked at her in mild confusion at the single word she’d spoken. Looking up at him rather timidly, she elaborated.

 

“His name – it’s Tzark.”

 

He nodded in response. Seeing the mood was rather uncomfortable, he moved into the back room for a moment. He saw her eyes follow him as he walked and then vanished around a corner. In the laboratory, he found a crate he’d used on the top shelf; luckily the preservation spell on it was still active. Grabbing the flowers and fruit from it, he quickly proceeded to mash them into a fine paste which was then mixed with pear nectar and some other juice to form a sweet shake drink, a pitcher full. Grabbing a spare mug, he returned to Zephye on the couch. Offering her a full mug, he took his place on the other side. Zephye seemed a little surprised at first, but quickly dug into her drink, emptying nearly half the mug. With a sad kind of smile, she eventually continued on her own.

 

“It was before…before the accidents…before mama…”

 

Her voice dropped off, sounding almost on the verge of tears. He had the oddest urge to reach over and hold her, but knowing the stubborn little girl she’d just push him away or freeze up. He didn’t know what had happened to Eridell – perhaps Zephye would elaborate later… But, for now, it was best to let her tell this one tale only and then have her rest. Zephye took several deep breaths and some more sips from her mug.

 

“It was Schala’s fault. Schala’s mama is Kallie and Schala think that because her mama’s on the council she can do whatever she wants to do and never get in trouble. Schala always picked on me. Wheatear it was my hairstyle, my clothes, or my eyes – Schala always found a reason to be mean.”

 

He thought back to just an hour or so before when they had been walking to the rooms: that girl who had sneered at Zephye had looked about her age. She had looked somewhat like Kallie – had that been Schala?

 

“Schala and her friends always were making fun of me. When mama was busy, I’d have to find a place to be alone so they wouldn’t hurt me. I used to go out into the desert by the river ‘cause they were afraid of the water and so they never followed me. But then, on that day they did. Schala had a new knife from her mama for her birthday and she was telling them she wanted to break it in by carving up my face. I ran to the canyon top away from them – but they followed me.

 

“Schala’s friends made a line from the big rocks to the bushes to fence me in while Schala tried to catch me to cut me. In my running, I got my hair caught on the brambles of a bush. While I was trying to pull it free, Schala charged at me. I guess she lost her footing ‘cause she fell forward and tumbled into me. She fell flat on her face in the dirt, but the impact of her hitting into me knocked me over the edge. And I fell into the water.”

 

He watched her finger absentmindedly trace the edge of the mug over and over again as she spoke; his anger rising with each word.

 

“I couldn’t swim; I sank like a stone in that water. Second I hit it, the impact knocked most of the breath from me. It was fast and high during that time and I was swept downstream in a second. I kinda heard someone from up above, not Schala, saying they were running to get help, but I knew it wouldn’t do me much good. I tried grabbing onto rocks of plants as I got pushed along, but the river was so fast that everything just slipped through my fingers.

 

I thought I was going to die. I kept getting pushed under and each time I only was just barely able to get my head back up. I was getting more and more tired. And then, I wasn’t strong enough to make it to the surface again and everything kinda went black…

 

“When I woke up, I thought I was dead and in the next world, but I wasn’t. It was Tzark. He’d seen me get swept into the lake and that I couldn’t swim. He’d fished me out of the water, brought me to shore, and revived me. I’d never met an outsider before: we read about them a lot but we were never told anything about them other than most of them didn’t like us Gerudo. But Tzark was so nice to me. He helped me make a little fire to keep me warm. He made sure my legs and arms were broken or bruised and my head was okay. He even fed me: it was fried clams.

 

“Then I saw the sun was going down and I thought about how upset mama was going to be: maybe mama would think I was dead. So I asked Tzark if he could bring me home. So he had me climb on his back and he swam back up the river. It didn’t seem scary when I was with him. When we got almost up to the top waterfall, I saw mama was there, looking like she was about to burst into hysterics. But then she saw me and that I was okay and she was really happy. She gave Tzark something as a thank you gift and I made my first ever friend.

 

“Next day, Schala got in big trouble for trying to hurt me, causing that accident, and then lying about it. I was happy she got a punishment for that. But it didn’t change who Schala was – she was still mean to me after. But Tzark stayed my friend: we played music together or just talked. And he was the only one who didn’t toss me aside when the incidents happened…”

 

And just as suddenly as she began her speech, she suddenly quieted and wouldn’t meet his eyes again. With a deep sigh, her summoned the plate with the slice of strawberry cake he’d set aside earlier in the back room. Floating the plate to himself, he then gently laid it on her lap. Zephye’s eyes went wide.

 

“This is for me?”

 

The question was quiet and said in almost disbelief. When he nodded with a slight smile, she asked another more incredulous question.

 

“What is it?”

 

He gawked for a moment; had she really never had cake before? Things like this obviously needed to change and fast.

 

“It’s strawberry shortcake.” He said, but then seeing the seemingly ever present look of confusion, he tried to explain each part to her. “It’s made of sweet cake, crème, and strawberries. Cake is kind of like a sweet form of bread but softer; crème is sweet milk, close to the consistency of your shake; and strawberries are a sweet fruit, there’s really nothing you’ve had that’s close to them but you’ll like them for sure. Try it.”

 

Zephye looked uncertain for a minute, but eventually cut off a tiny piece of the cake with her fork and tasted it. Her look went from thoughtful to happy and the next time the fork dug in, it was a huge chunk of cake. In no time, Zephye cleaned her plate. Happy and smiling, she relaxed back a bit against the couch. Seeing her mood shift yet again, Ganondorf decided to try and get some more information from her.

 

“The ‘incidents’ you spoke of: can you tell me what happened?”

 

Zephye’s face went pale at the mention; the smile vanishing from her face faster than the cake had from her plate. Seeing this, he tried to salvage her good mood.

 

“I know they were accidents; you didn’t really mean to do it but you can’t control it. It’s not your fault; the older sisters should have known how to help you deal with these issues so they didn’t occur, but no one helped you. It’s not your fault. I’d like to try and help you control it. But, in order for me to be able to help you I need to hear how these incidents happened: where you were, what you were feeling, and who they happened to. That will help me understand what’s setting it off…and how to help you control it.”

 

Zephye stared at her knees for a long time after he finished speaking. He didn’t speak another word, unwilling to interrupt her thoughts. After what seemed like an eternity, she shook her head.

 

“I…I can’t. I’m sorry…but it’s not something I want to remember. It’s not something I ever want to talk about again. No one can understand.” Her voice was flat and sad.

 

He wanted to tell her she **had** to remember or it would happen again. He wanted to insist that she discuss it. He wanted to tell her that he, of all people, **would understand.** He wanted to try and help her, but most of all he wanted her to trust him. And he knew the simple truth: pushing her to talk would affectedly be pushing her away. Well, tomorrow was another day. Maybe after a day or two more of bonding she’d be willing to talk.

 

With an understanding nod, he helped her up and led her into the bathroom. He let her rinse her mouth out, wash her face and hands, use the bathroom, and then provided her a warm nightgown for the cold night ahead. He managed to convince her to let him take her hair down and brush out the remaining knots and tangles. When Zephye was sufficiently ready, and yawning, he led her back to the bedroom and tucked the girl in. Zephye fell asleep almost instantly, drifting off to hopefully pleasant dreams.

 

With her in bed, he headed back to the laboratory. He stopped momentarily at the door, adding reinforcement to the wards so that none could enter during the night, and then releasing the tingling warning for entry and exit so he could concentrate. In the laboratory, he shut the door, retrieved his spell book, and began delving to see what his foes were doing. One sage he had imprisoned in the sacred realm upon his escape: 5 sages, one princess, and one hero still were out there. For hours, he looked in the connecting magical realm for signs of them and their activities but found little. Obviously the princess was working to protect them. With a disappointed groan, he headed off to the bathroom to prepare himself for bed.

 

He rinsed his mouth, washed his hands, cleaned his face, used the toilet, and then trimmed his unruly hair. It was only then did he return to the bedroom to find his night clothes and change. As he headed to bed, there was a nagging feeling in the back of his mind that **something** wasn’t quite right. After a quick check, he practically threw the covers off the bed to confirm his suspicions.

 

The bed was empty: Zephye was gone.


	14. Chapter 12: Alone and Afraid

Zephye couldn’t sleep at all. She didn’t know why she couldn’t sleep; she just couldn’t.

 

Even though the dinner had been filling and her stomach was happy she still couldn’t sleep. Even though the shake had calmed her somewhat frazzled nerves and allowed her to speak she still couldn’t sleep. Even though Lord Ganondorf had been nothing but kind to her and had never yelled or hurt her she still couldn’t sleep. Even after eating that delicious slice of heaven known as cake she still couldn’t sleep. Even though she was dressed in probably the finest clothes she’d ever worn and her hair had been combed until it was immaculate she still couldn’t sleep. Even though Lord Ganondorf had told her the accidents hadn’t been her fault at all, she still couldn’t sleep.

 

She didn’t understand why at all. When she had been tucked into bed, she had wanted to sleep, so she had done what had always worked before: act like you were asleep, empty your mind, and then you eventually do fall asleep. But it never happened. Why?

 

Perhaps her head was swimming with too many questions for sleep to come?

 

Why had Asyl tried to protect her? Why had the council tried to kill her? Why did no one else seem to love her? How had Lord Ganondorf come to know she was imprisioned? Why had Lord Ganondorf saved her? Why had he healed her? Why was Lord Ganondorf being nice to her? Why was she living in Lord Ganondorf’s rooms? Where was the council? Why wouldn’t Lord Ganondorf give her any real answers about anything?! What was going on?!

It didn’t make any sense for her. It wasn’t as if he could **care** about what happened to her, right? That he **cared** for her? **Loved her?** No, no, no – no one had ever loved Zephye besides mother… **No one**.

 

Her thoughts turned to her mother, to Eridell. Eridell who had always loved her no matter what, who had comforted her, nurtured her, raised her… Eridell who would not have turned her back to her if she had been around when those accidents happened… if she had been there…

 

She felt her eyes begin to well with tears and she sat straight upright: there was something she needed to do. She needed to visit her mother again. Quietly, she rose from the bed. Locating her shoes was the easy part – the hard part would be getting out past Lord Ganondorf. Luckily, he was not in the sitting room as she crept in. The door that led to the weird lab was shut – he must be in there. Carefull, she opened the door and stepped out, half expecting him to burst out of the room and yell at her as it opened with a loud thud. When he did not, she carefully shut it and tiptoes down the stairs.

 

The guard schedule hadn’t been changed: Zephye knew it by heart and it was easy to avoid the fortress guards. Getting past the closed gate into the desert required some more creativity. Some prep with a little bit of food to attract some levers and a flash bang bomb created a disruption and a distraction. While the guards focused on cornering and eliminating the rampaging levers, Zephye snuck out through the gate unnoticed.

Crossing the desert went fast; Zephye kept looking over her shoulder as if she expected to see Lord Ganondorf appear over it at any second, chasing her down with a furious glare. She reached the colossus area in what must have been record time and quickly made her way past the protective barrier into the spring.

 

It was a small spring, barely large enough to fit three people. It was used solely by the tribe’s spiritualist to talk and pray to the desert gods. It was to this spring that Eridell had come each day early in the morning before the sun had risen. Most days she returned after sunset, few days had it been sooner. Zephye had often joined her here, to be with her mother. It was now Eridell’s resting place: well the statue’s resting place.

 

For that’s all Eridell was now: just a stone statue. Unable to hold Zephye, unable to love her or guide her, unable to do anything but just stand.

 

Zephye laid herself down on the ground by the statue and began to cry. She was alone in the world. Alone and scared of almost everything around her, most of all herself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> An - A shorter chapter. Zephye is confused by the kindness that Ganondorf is giving her and unclear as to why he's paying attention to her. She believes, after her years of neglect follow her mother's imprisonment, that Ganondorf can't actually care for her at all and the kindness is just for show. These thought drive her to seek out the only person who does love her: her mother Eridell.
> 
> The reveal of Zephye & Ganondorf's realtionship to Zephye herself will occur within either the following chapter or the one after. Havne't written them yet, so XD


	15. Chapter 13: Flight Across The Sands

            He practically flew out of the room, changing his clothes back with a wave of his hand and a spell he didn’t normally ever use. Panic and fear had taken hold in heart in such an overwhelming fashion that it was hard to think unless he forced himself to momentarily calm down and just think. Just breathe…just breathe…

 

She couldn’t have gone far, gotten far enough away for him to not be able to find her in such a short amount of time. Three hours on foot was not too much to deal with…if she had taken a horse however…

 

No, he shouldn’t think these things. Best just to calm down and sense for her before letting his imagination run wild. The sense hadn’t gone off, hadn’t alerted him so Zephye was most likely fine. Maybe she had just taken a short walk to cool off or made a trip to the kitchens for a midnight snack? There was no reason to assume she’d run away and yet, it was the only possibility somehow.

 

He forced himself to calm down once he’s reached the top roof of the fortress, forced himself to just stand and breathe for a moment so he could feel where her magic was. It would do no good if he couldn’t calm himself enough to be able to find her. Just breathe…just breathe…breathe….in…out…in…out…

 

There – a signal! Far out, still within the borders of the Gerudo’s land however. Out in the desert, near the colossus? A cave perhaps?   _A spring!_ His mind provided suddenly along with the image of another person dear to him. _Eridell’s spring._

 

The revelation of her whereabouts calmed him slightly. The spring had a special magic barrier that prevented anyone but a select few Gerudo from entering; it repelled monsters, outsiders, and other sisters so that the spiritualist could concentrate of her task. Eridell had allowed few in. As far as he knew, the only invited had been Eridell’s teacher, Eridell’s best friend, himself obviously, and her daughter Zephye. Given that both the former spiritualist and the best friend were both deceased, that no one else besides himself that could enter behind Zephye. As long as she stayed inside, she was untouchable.

 

It didn’t make him want to slow down in getting to her though. With practiced ease, he made his way down to the stables at the fortress’s rear. Most of the horses kept within remained asleep as he entered; the exceptions were the pair in the rear who both looked up as he entered and walked down.

 

The taller stallion was pitch black with a mane and tail the color of fire and eyes to match. This was Storm, his own personal steed enhanced by his magic. Storm was a swift as his name and the stallion’s nasty temperament generally kept the sisters from doing anything other than feeding him. The second was a smaller brown mare who moved forward to nudge the offered hand with her muzzle and stared at him with sad brown eyes.  Her coat was the color of coffee beans, her mane and tail as black as a raven, and her temperament matched her sweet looks. This was Maple and she was (or was that had been) Eridell’s horse.

 

It had been Storm the normally disinterested stallion who had chased after Maple, like it had been love at first sight. It had been how he had met Eridell for the first time. Eridell had often joked that their own relationship had started because Storm had fallen for Maple and that otherwise they might have never met. Ganondorf had always laughed at the idea, but perhaps Eridell had something there. Seeing Storm with his chosen mate standing beside him brought up something akin to longing in his heart; in his business over the past few days he hadn’t realized how much he had missed Eridell until this moment.

 

A soft whinny broke him from his thoughts and he glanced down. There was a third horse, a small little thing that looked around three or so years. It was mainly brown with some dark brown and black speckling over the coat. Towards the hooves, the coat turned completely dark, giving the illusion the horse was wearing socks. The mane with long and tangled and the color of rich deep chocolate; the eyes were brown and wide, looking up curiously at the new visitor. He didn’t need an expert to see that this little thing was the offspring of Storm and Maple. He reached over to gently ruffle the small horse’s head and watched as it whinnied in excitement, pressing back into his palm as if it longed to be touched. In a strange way, it was perfect: Zephye would have own horse now. The young thing would need training and a name, but that was something to work on with Zephye; together with Zephye.

 

Patting the little horse one more time, he turned back to Storm and easily slipped the bridle over his head and led him out of the stable pen. Storm was patient as he saddled him up as he was for Ganondrof and Ganondorf alone; although he had allowed Eridell to ride him once or twice without objection. Mounting the massive stallion, they headed off together into the night.

 

The guards at the gate to the desert did not question where he was headed at this late hour, there merely bowed and opened it for him. Ganondorf nudged Storm and the stallion took off like lighting. The path through was familiar to them both: Storm did most of the navigation with only minor inputs from himself. Before long the colossus was in sight and soon after that, they reached the cave which held the spring nearby. Leaving Storm outside to drink from the small oasis, Ganondorf entered alone.

 

It was easy to spot Zephye, apparently fast asleep at the spring’s edge. What gained his attention, however, was the statue she was asleep next to. Eridell. The statue was the perfect likeness and, if he hadn’t known any better, he would have said it was a great copy of her. But this was no mere statue: this was Eridell herself imprisoned. She looked everything and yet nothing like what he remembered. The details were all there but the light was missing from her face: there was no joy, no laughter. The posture was still and rigid and held none of the casual elegance Eridell seemed to naturally have. The statue was nothing but a mocking reminder of what he had once had and then lost. Just to see, he pressed his hand against the stone to feel the spell that had done this. A strong and unfamiliar magic pulse under his fingers; as he had thought it would not be an easy spell to reverse.

 

But for now, there was a more pressing issue: Zephye. With a soft sigh, he reached down to touch her shoulder and rouse her. The moment his had made contact, she shot up and over into the corner faster than lighting, her eyes wide and red with obvious signs that she had been crying. The look on her face was neither surprise nor shame, rather anger. Slightly confused, he reached out toward her.

 

“Zephye…”

 

And just as suddenly, he was forced to withdraw his hand, the leather covering singed slight by the lightning that had struck from Zephye’s turbulent aura.

 

“Stay away from me! Go away! Leave me along!”

 

Her voice held none of the previous tremble or uncertainty, none of the previous ever-present fear: it was now hard as stone. She sounded enraged and yet almost like she was about to burst into tears as well. What in the world was going on?

 

Still confused, he tried to reason with her. “Zephye, wha-”

 

His question was cut off by more lighting, which stuck just short of his feet.

 

“Just GO! Leave me be! Why are you here?! Why are you pretending you care?” She was practically screaming at him despite their proximity. “Do you think I’m stupid or something?!  Do you really think I’ll fall for the whole ‘I care about you, come with me’ thing all over again? You’re three years too late to fool me with that crap trick!”

 

Pretending to care? Crap trick? What in Din’s name was she going on about?

 

Zephye continued her rant, oblivious to his thoughtful state. “I know your game; I know what your plan is. You’ll be nice to me, make me feel welcome. You’ll promise to help me, tell me you care. There’ll be some stupid speech about how everything will be just fine. And then when I finally trust you, when I finally feel like I belong, you’ll turn around and laugh at me and say it was a joke and you never cared at all! It was just a game to see how stupid I was! I know this game already – quit trying to do it! I won’t fall for this crap again! I’m not that gullible little kid anyone!”

 

He felt his heart sink slightly. So this was why she seemed so closed off to him. And three years ago…wasn’t that when the first incident had happened, according to the others he had spoken to previously? It was no coincidence then – they had set her off by toying with her when she was vulnerable after losing Eridell. When the found the one responsible for this, they would burn as well.

 

But for now, he needed to calm Zephye down. She was still screeching at him to go away, her aura turbulent and ready to strike. Perhaps it was best to try a different approach. Concentrating, he gathered his own aura and projected it, filling the room with dark magic.

 

“ENOUGH!”

 

His voice boomed, amplified by the power in the air. Zephye had frozen mid word and pulled backwards, shivering slightly. Her aura had vanished as quickly as it had appeared and she sat there, transfixed in her place.

 

“Do not dare think that even for a moment that my kindness towards you has been a game! It is no pretend game – it is the truth!” He wanted to say more, but simpler was best at a time like this.

 

Zephye did not speak for several moments, but then stood and glared at him. “Why” she began slowly with an acidic tone, “should I believe you? What reason have you to care about me? What reason does the Great and Powerful Lord King have for caring for a lone little girl? WHY?”  Zephye’s goldenrod eyes narrowed. She had quite the temper; much like him. “Tell me why!!”

 

“Because you are my daughter.”


	16. Chapter 14: Knowing and Understanding

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, I finally got back to this. Enjoy Chapter 14!

Zephye of the Desert Sands

Chapter 14: Knowing and Understanding

 

            She swore that her heart had stopped in her chest. For moment, there was nothing but absolute silence; save her own ragged breathing. Of everything she had thought she might hear that defiantly wasn’t one of the top choices: hell, it wasn’t even on the list! Her mind had gone blank and all she could do was just stare.

 

            In hindsight, things were making sense now. It made sense why was being so nice to her: taking care of her injuries, feeding her, talking to her, saving her, and following her everywhere. In made sense now, her odd eye color was genetic. Even her weird abilities made sense now, for hadn’t she just seen and felt what the other sisters had always talked about: magic? Those things were adding up.

 

            She was beginning to answer some of the questions swimming around in her head. Why had Asyl tried to protect her? Well, Asyl and always been observant and had that thirst for knowledge: she must have figure out the truth. Why had the council tried to kill her? Well, that was still partially a mystery: they obviously didn’t know who she was or they would have never dared to.

 

            Why had Lord Ganondorf saved her? Why had he healed her? Why was Lord Ganondorf being nice to her? Why was she living in Lord Ganondorf’s rooms? She apparently now had the answer for all of those now too. Although she wasn’t quite sure she believed it herself.

 

            What didn’t make sense is why no one had told her for all these years. No, what didn’t make sense is why _mother_ hadn’t told her at all! Why hadn’t Eridell told her? Did she think that she would go around bragging about it? Did she not trust her own child? She didn’t want to believe that was true.

 

            Her head turned to her mother’s statue, still unmoving in the same spot. She knew the statue couldn’t answer her, yet she felt as if she had to ask. “Why, mother?” she whispered barely making any sound. “Why didn’t you tell me…?”

 

            “It is not because she did not trust you or love you. She did it to protect you.” The voice that answered her was not mother’s but that of her Lord King Ganondorf. She turned slightly: he hadn’t moved from his position but his position seemed more relaxed. Her eyes flickered up towards his face, silently urging him to continue.

 

            There was a sigh, and then. “You mother likely foresaw that news of you, should she reveal your identity, would travel fast. Keeping the existence of a child of their king secret would be difficult for your sister: you know such. News of you, a child of royal Gerudo blood, would spread fast across Hyrule. And, with the barrier weakened and myself absent at the time, there would surely be those who would come and seek your death. Those who hate our kind, those who hate me, or just those who love to kill: your head would become a prize. Eridell realized that there would be little that the other sisters could do to protect you from such foes, and so she did not tell anyone of your origins, not even you. It was the sacrifice she made to keep you safe.”

            She watched as he paused for a moment, gazing at the statue. “I do believe she intended to be beside you for it all: her imprisonment threw a wrench into her carefully laid plans. And it unfortunately resulted in your bad treatment among the others. She surely did not intend for this to happen.”

 

            Zephye lowered her head, still somewhat angry and confused. “Did you know?”

 

            “Did I know? To which are you referring? Did I know she was pregnant? Did I know she was imprisoned? Did I know upon my return who you were?” Zephye looked at him incredulously as he chucked softly. “Let’s answer them all then, before I’m asked. Did I know she was pregnant? No, I did not. The only time we actually had together were the two days immediately before I left again. There was no way for her to know, for me to know. And I am difficult to contact when I leave Hyrule. Had I known, I would not have left.”

 

            There was a sudden seriousness to the tone of his voice on the last sentence. Zephye felt certain it was no fib. With a nod, she let him continue.

 

            “Did I know she was imprisoned? In a way, I could tell something was amiss. Your mother has a particular way of connecting with those she cares for. Even so far from Hyrule, I could sense that connection changed and I knew something was wrong and that my return needed to occur before schedule. I did not return however until my work was completed. Why? You know her probably better than most: you know how angry she would become. All that fuss over her…she would never accept it.” There was a gentler tone to his voice, almost fondness. Zephye found herself smiling: that sounded like mother.

 

            “And finally, did I know upon my return who you were? Not at first. When I pulled you from the pits, the color of your stone was the first inkling that something was off. Magic in a child of our kind is rare: I was going to interested in you no matter what based upon that alone. Then Asyl provided the background information I needed to complete the picture. Obviously, she figured out who you were and tried to protect you. She only had to mention the color of your eyes to spark my suspicions.” His voice had become softer.

 

            Zephye nodded softly. She had thought it might have been Asyl…

 

            “It was my intention to reveal your identity to the sisters after you recovered from your injuries. This was a discussion I had hoped to have with you once you were feeling better. However, given the sparse details of your treatment I’ve been privy to I can see why you were reluctant to trust me. In hindsight, it might have been best to tell you immediately upon your awakening.” His hand came to rest on her shoulder and she almost jumped; she hadn’t even heard him walk over to be. “But what’s done is done. Those who have hurt you shall pay for what they have done and I will make it very clear to the rest just exactly who you are.”

 

            The hand on her shoulder was pulling her, spinning her around to face him. He was kneeling on the ground now, almost as short as her, as the other hand came to rest upon her other shoulder. Face to face with him and looking at the golden eyes that mirrored her own, she began to notice other similarities too: features she had often asked mother where she had gotten them from were now easily explained.

 

            And then he spoke again. “I will allow no one to ever hurt you again.”

 

            And Zephye couldn’t help but throw her arms around his neck, hold on, and just cry.


	17. Chapter 15: Rest

  
Zephye of the Desert Sands  
Chapter 15: Rest

Ganondorf just allowed her to hold him, slightly stunned in his own right. It was the first real contact that she had initiated. He had carried her twice, healed her twice, held her and, and combed her hair. And through all of that, she had been either unconscious or uncomfortable. 

She was so used to being hurt, to being ignored…after realizing the amount of…damage she’d suffered, he felt as if he had to try and comfort her. And the only way he’d know how to do that was by telling her the truth. He had hoped it would help her understand; help her begin to trust him more. He wasn’t expecting this response at all.

His words had had more of an effect on her than he could have imagined, but he was grateful for that. And so he knelt there and held her until her tears had stopped. He gave her a cloth to dry her eyes and then scooped her off the floor into his arms.

And with a smile, he began to walk back outside. He watched as her gaze lingered on the statue of Eridell with this odd look and he knew what she wanted.

“I cannot reverse it.” He stated simply. Golden eyes turned to stare at him, wide with shock. “At least not now without research and time. It is an old and complicated magic, one that I am unfamiliar with. It will be hard to find a reversal cure, but we’ll manage, yes?”

He shot her a smile and she looked at him in confusion. “You have magic too, Zephye: you are my child and this is inherited from me. At the moment, you think it is a bad thing because of the trouble it has caused you, but with time and control you will learn to use it and to love it. Perhaps you will be able to assist me in rescuing your mother.”

Zephye looked at him with the concern clear in her eyes. He chuckled. “Do not worry, from what I have seen I have no doubts you will pick it up very quickly.”

She smiled shyly. “Who…who is going to teach me?”

He grinned. “I would entrust no one to this task other than myself. I think it has become painfully clear that the sisters are incapable of understanding how to teach you.” His grin soured into a deep frown. “Even those whom I instructed failed to help you with this. No, I shall not entrust it to another. I shall teach you myself.”

“Thank you.” Her voice was small and quiet, but there was no mistaking the happy tone of her voice.

He carried her outside, wrapping the cloak around her more as they stepped out into the cold desert night. Storm was still faithfully waiting by the oasis and approached as he exited the spring. Zephye stilled in his arms as Storm got his muzzle right into her face, but when the stallion started licking her face she giggled. Ganondorf resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Storm was a fierce steed in battle and when facing his enemies. The stallion disliked the vast majority of the sisters, Eridell had been the exception to the rule. And now it looked like there was going to be a second exception in Zephye. He wondered if Storm could tell that this was Eridell’s daughter, his own daughter. He could never quite tell with that horse of his: he seemed almost too smart at times.

He easily lifted Zephye onto Storm, then climbed on behind her. Ensuring the cloak around her was still secure, he hooked an arm around her waist for safety. Holding the reigns in one hand, they headed off into the night. It was clear from the expression on her face as they rode that Zephye had little experience on horses, but she obviously loved the ride.

By the time they returned, almost half the night had passed. The guards at the gate bowed as he passed; he made sure to hide Zephye under the cloak as to garner her any more attention. Bringing Storm into the stable, he greeted Maple again. Maple and Zephye obviously knew each other for Zephye immediately reached out for the mare and Maple nuzzled her muzzle into Zephye’s hair. He smiled and watched the scene as he removed Storm’s bridle and saddle.

The tiny little horse, obviously curious about what the fuss was, came poking its nose out from the back of the stall. It was almost the same height as Zephye, he noted with a laugh. Maple pushed the tiny thing forward towards Zephye who stared a little at the cute pony before her. 

“I do believe that given the parentage of this little one, it would be fitting if you were its owner.” He said softly as Storm trotted past to stand beside Maple.

He watched her gold eyes go from the pony, to Maple, to Storm, and finally back to the pony. Understanding suddenly filtered across her face.

“This…this pony is mine?” She asked softly, rubbing its muzzle softly.

“Indeed.” Ganondorf told her. “You will need to pick a name for him.”

“Tsunami.” Zephye’s response came without a second of hesitation. He stared at her quizzically and watched her blush slightly. “It’s from the story that mama always read.”

He nodded in understanding. “Tsunami it is then. Come, let’s allow them to rest: it is far past your bedtime as well.”

Zephye patted Tsunami once more and then allowed him to shut the stall gate and lead her back upstairs. He made her wash her hands again before bringing her to bed. Tucking her back under the covers, he climbed in the opposite end himself ready for sleep. There was a minute or two of silence, and then the sheets shuffled as Zephye move next to him. There was a strange look in her eyes that he didn’t understand and then Zephye moved closer to snuggle up beside him. With a smile, he draped an arm over her and tried to fall back asleep.

He might have only been imaging it, but he could have sworn he heard her voice say “Good night, daddy” before she drifted off to sleep.


End file.
